Jules Shepard’s Gluten-Free Hamburger Buns

I’m so thrilled to welcome Jules Shepard to guest post and share one of her recipes here today. If you are in the celiac and/or gluten-free community, I assume you already know Jules. She is not only an incredible advocate who was very involved in getting the FDA to require gluten-free labeling, she is a talented recipe developer, cookbook author and business owner with her own gluten-free flour blend. Please welcome Jules…

Jackie and I were co-panelists last year on a recipe conversion and authorship techniques panel at the Food Allergy Blogger Conference (FABlogCon). Jackie and I share the challenges of celiac disease, but also the passion to create new and even more adventurous recipes which defy the deprivation mentality so many ultimately adopt when faced with dietary restrictions and food allergies.

I was diagnosed with celiac disease in 1999 after 10 years of unexplained illness. At that time, there were few products that were gluten free and fewer which identified themselves as gluten free. Gritty rice flour was the essential GF baking ingredient, and the tell-tale gluten free taste and texture which gave gluten free foods a bad name. Gluten free recipes were wholly unacceptable to my palate, and because of it, I entered a food depression for the first year or two of my gluten-free life, refusing to bake and taking no pleasure from eating or sharing food with others.

At some point I realized I was staring at living this way for the rest of my life, and it wasn’t pretty. So I decided to change it; I decided there had to be a way to create an all purpose gluten free flour I could use in any recipe, just like I had before, and one that wasn’t gritty or off-tasting. I worked at it for two years, experimenting here and there with various flours and proportions and recipes until I had created a blend I could use in scones, cookies, cakes, roux and bread. This blend freed me to make baked goods I didn’t mind sharing with non-gluten free friends and family because it tasted that good.

Creating this original flour blend was the beginning of the rest of my happy baking life. It drove me to write my first cookbook in 2006 and later, to begin manufacturing an improved blend and other baking mixes to share with others. It was the beginning of the creative inspiration that drove me to author two more books and numerous e-books and to start my blog, podcast and editorial career at Gluten Free & More Magazine.

Recipes like my gluten free hamburger buns are made possible by this blend, and I’m so happy to be able to share them with you. I hope my recipes help make your gluten free baking life a little happier, too.

Making gluten free hamburger or hot dog buns might seem like a Herculean task, but I promise you that it’s easy! I use these little English Muffin rings for my buns, but you could use a bun pan made for this purpose, mason jar rings, or just shape rings out of aluminum foil. This hot dog bun pan is also a great investment if your family really loves their dogs.

I love this gluten-free bun recipe because it’s so easy and reliable. Imagine having fluffy and light gluten-free buns anytime you wanted them! Bake and eat or freeze for great burgers anytime – you’ll never have to settle for hockey puck buns again!

Some of the fun ingredients I’ve used for this recipe include gluten-free beer (the bubbles are excellent for making airy breads, but you could use club soda or gingerale instead) and gluten-free mashed potato flakes — they work really well in this recipe, and they’re super easy to find at any grocery store. Just buy the plain ones without extra flavoring. Combined with my soft, grit-free gfJules™ flour, you’ll have the best buns on the block!

extra olive oil and milk (dairy or soy, coconut or hemp work well) for brushing on rolls

Instructions

Prepare rings or bun pans by oiling lightly. Place the rings on a parchment-lined baking sheet and set aside. Or, if you have a hamburger bun pan, oil the pan and set it aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, apple cider vinegar and honey.

In another large bowl, whisk all dry ingredients except yeast (flour, milk powder/potato flakes, salt and sugar). With mixer on low speed, slowly pour the dry ingredients into the liquids to combine.

Continue beating on low speed while pouring in the beer to mix. Once incorporated, add the yeast. Beat until the batter is smooth, then increase mixing speed and beat for 4 minutes.

Spoon batter into oiled rings or pans, filling no more than half-way up. Smooth the tops with a rubber spatula. Don’t make the buns too large at this stage, (unless you’re looking to make Kaiser rolls). Brush all buns lightly with olive oil. Cover with oiled wax paper and let rise in a warm, moist place for 30 minutes (an oven preheated to 200 ºF, then turned off, with a bowl of water in the oven to add moisture is a good option). Do not let the rolls rise more than double their size, or they will rise too much to support themselves and may collapse when cooling.

Once the rolls have risen, bake at 375º F (static) or 350º F (convection) for approximately 20 minutes. The internal temperature of the rolls should be 205 – 210º F. The rolls should have risen above the tops of the pans, and will be golden brown. Remove to cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then gently remove from the pans and serve with your favorite burger.

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I have always loved food. Loved to cook. Loved to talk about food, think about food, read about food. You get the gist. Food + Me = Love! Recently, my relationship with food was challenged. My love turned to fear.Read My Story